Final Chance To Say Goodbye
by Korin Chou
Summary: [A Tomahome sadfic] What happened the night Tomahome buried his family?


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A Final Chance to Say Good-Bye

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By: [Korin Chou][1]**

Disclaimers:  
What happened that night Tomahome had buried his entire family after Suboshi had killed them? What had happened overnight to have caused Tomahome to start acting all cheerful the next morning when he woke up Miaka and Nuriko so that they could head back to Kunon to leave for the boat trip? In episode 27.

Could Tomahome have been visited by the spirits of his family, come to say a final good-bye to him before going on to the other side? No one knows what may have happened that night except Tomahome himself.

Anyone who's seen the episodes after their death, would know that the spirits of Tomahome's family has shown up two times before the final episode of Fushigi Yugi, the first time was when Tomahomes siblings appeared in the real world to help Tomahome defeat Suboshi, then they appeared again in Tomahome's dream where he was getting married to Miaka. So even though they may be dead, that doesn't mean that their not still around...

Here's my idea of what may have happened.

WARNING: Spoilers alert for Episode 24 of Fushigi Yugi!

_~Nightfall~_

Tomahome sat back against a tree, his body heaving with shudders as another wave a tears hit him. He had just spent the entire afternoon burying his family after the fight against Suboshi. As he sits there, he buries his face in his hands as sobs broke out from him.  
_"Pop."_

"Yuiren."

"Chuei."

"Gyokuran."

*Minna, why you? Why did you have to die?! That bastard had no right to do this to you. It wasn't our fault that Amiboshi had died, but Suboshi took out his anger on all of you just to get back at me.* Tomahome thought angrily between his tears as he stared at the 5 fresh graves that stood a few feet away from him. _*I will get him back. I'll make him pay for what he's done. I promise you that.*_

Tomahome's thoughts went back to earlier that day as he remembered what had happened. When he stepped through the door of the hut to see the masacre. His entire family was dead, all except for his youngest sister, Yuiren, who lay dying on the floor near the front door...

* * *

_"Nichan. Don't... leave... me..." Yuiren's voice sounded so far away, so weak, as she spoke. "Yuiren... is... scared... Nichan promise not to leave?... I'm so cold..."_

"Yuiren! Hold on please! Nichan promise never to leave you alone again. Please hold on." Tomahome pleaded anxiously with Yuiren, even though he already knew it was too late. "Just hold on! Don't go."

A small smile appeared on Yuiren's face as she stared up into her brothers own. "I'm... happy that Nichan is here... Will nichan... and oneechan take Yuiren-chan to market later?"

"Yes, Yuiren. I'll take you anywhere you want, just don't leave me. Please?" Tomahome pleaded as he gripped Yuiren's small hand in his own, feeling her life drain from her body.

"Yuiren will always be with nichan... always..." Yuiren whisphered as her eyes closed, her hand falls limply from Tomahome's, as she took her final breath.

"YUIREN!!!"

* * *

"Damn, you Suboshi! She was only 5 years old!!" Tomahome yelled into the heavens. "She was only 5 years old... She barely even had a chance to fully live her life, and you ended it before it ever fully started! None of them did."

He heard Nuriko's voice repeating itself over and over again in his mind, he still felt Nuriko's own tears on his back as he tried to hold Tomahome back and talked him out of the rage.

None of the words Nuriko said broke through berserker rage Tomahome had been in but it was Nuriko's next words that stopped him from going after Soi and Suboshi after they had made their escape.

* * *

_"NURIKO!!! LET ME GO! I'M GOING KILL THEM! I WILL MAKE THEM PAY!" Tomahome yelled out struggling against Nuriko's grip, his kanji glowing brighter than before, his black hair almost turning white as his power grew through his anger._

"Tomahome! Stop it! Do you hear me! Your scaring Miaka1 Look at Miaka! Do you want Miaka to feel like it's her fault that this happened?" Nuriko shouted.

*Miaka* For the first since going into the rage, Tomahome had looked directly at Miaka, and saw what Nuriko had seen. The tears running than Miaka's face, the fear in her eyes at what he had just become, but it was the look of horror on her face over what had happened to his family that did him in. 

He felt the anger and hatred disappear, felt it turn into sadness and remorse. Without a word to either Miaka or Nuriko, Tomahome turned and walked into the hut that had housed his family. And that was when the tears and screams finally broke free as he fully began to mourn his family.

Later...

Searching the house he found Chuei and the others in the back room, together. Chuei's body laid in front of the others, as if when he was still standing he had his back facing the others. He lifted Chuei's body only to stop when he spots something shiny still clutched tightly in Chueis left hand even in death. 

It was a meat cleaver.

_*Chuei*_ Tomahome thought unhappily as he clutched Chuei's body closer to his own. _*I see now Chuei. You tried to protect them. You tried to protect both of them with the cleaver. Very admirable Chuei. You tried... But...*_ Tomahome thought as the tears and sobs began again.

* * *

Tomahome's memories then went back to when Miaka had come to talk to him when he had been burying his family, and he remembered how he had treated her...

* * *

_"Tomahome?" Miaka asked, then gasps when Tomahome stops the burial of his family to look up at her. She sees how red and wild-eyed his eyes are from crying as he turns around and stares at her, as if he's not really seeing her._

"They won't stop... The tears just won't stop." Tomahome said feebly as he turned back to his work on Yuiren's grave, burying the toy ball he had bought in the market for her. "I never thought it would hurt this much..."

"Tomahome... I... I..." Miaka began slowly.

"Leave me alone. Please Miaka. I wish to be alone in this." Tomahome said, his tone saying that he was still upset.

He half hears Miaka's own sobs, followed by the sound of her footsteps as she runs back in the direction she had come, Tomahome not even bothering to turn to watch as she leaves, as he moves on to start the next grave.

* * *

By that time Tomahome had started a fire to keep himself warm as he unrolled his futon that he had removed from the horses he and the others had brought with them.

"I'll decide what to do next come morning. If I should return with Nuriko and Miaka back to the capital or stay here." Tomahome thought as he lay down in the futon, and places falls into an exhausted sleep.

* * *

~~Dreams~~

Tomahome wakes to find himself somewhere else. "What the?! Where am I?"

_"Your in the crossroad, nichan."_ a young but familiar voice said in answer to his question.

*It couldn't be.* Tomahome thought to himself as he slowly turned around. Standing behind him was Yuiren, now dressed all in white instead of the yellow dress she had been wearing when she died. "Yuiren!" Tomahome bends down with his arms spread open. In her hands is the multi colored ball he had been planning to give her earlier. "I see that you have the ball I got for you."

Yuiren rushes into Tomahome's waiting arms, and the two hugged each other tightly for a few moments, before Yuiren broke the embrace. _"Nichan, I've missed you. All of us miss you. And thank you for the ball!"_

"I know. I miss you too. I to be with all of you again. And I wish that I can go back and undo what happened to you guys, so that you can still be alive." Tomahome looked around at their surroundings "What is this place? You called this the crossroads? What's the crossroads?"

_"Suzaku told us that the crossroads is where spirits can come to communicate with loved ones through dreams."_ Yuiren explained as she stared at her brother. _"The others couldn't come. Suzaku only let me come back to talk to you, nichan."_

"Talk to me? About what?" Tomahome asked afraid of what he might hear, as he picked Yuiren up and carries her to a log and sits down, placing her on his lap.

_"Nichan. Don't be sad about us. Your still alive, the only way you can help us now is by helping oneechan summon Suzaku. You can't mourn us forever."_ Yuiren chided, trying to sound adult. _"Miaka-oneechan needs you. **You** need her more than ever now that we are gone."_

"But..." Tomahome protested about to say something.

_"No buts. Daddy, Chuei and the others want you to be happy. Please Nichan? Don't you love oneechan anymore?"_ Yuiren asked looking into Tomahome's eyes.

"Of course I still love her." Tomahome said indignitly. "I'll never stop loving her. And I want to see her happy. I asked her to be wife, and she agreed, Yuiren."

Yuiren let out a cheer at the news as she jumped up on Tomahome's lap. _"Nichan will be very happy with Miaka? Pinky promise?"_ Yuiren asked as she held up her left hand with her pinky up.

Tomahome smiled a bit as he held up his own hand and they clapsed fingers. "Pinky promise."

Yuiren hugged Tomahome once more. _"Then we'll be happy if your happy. Even though we are dead, it's not so bad. I got to go. My time here is almost up."_ Yuiren said as she hopped off of Tomahome's lap.

"You have to leave so soon?" Tomahome protested. "You just got here."

_"I know. I'll miss you nichan."_ Yuiren said sadly as she faced him.

"Miss you too, Yuiren." Tomahome said. Looking around he could already see that the dreamscape area was already starting to disappear.

_"Oh! I almost forgot, Nichan!"_ Yuiren exclaimed as she pulled off something from around her neck. _"Give this to Miaka-chan, when you see her. I was making it for her when... you know..."_

Tomahome took the necklace and examined it, the beads on the necklace were 10 tiny acorns, on both sides of the string, in the middle of the acorns was a feather. "Yuiren this is a..."

_"I know nichan. Gotta go. See you nichan."_ Yuiren's said her voice fading along with everything else.

* * *

Tomahome awoke with a start to find that it was morning. Sitting up he put his hand to his forehead in exasperation. _*It was a dream... Yuiren couldn't have been here last night. Could she?*_ Tomahome thought then noticed that his hand was tightly gripped around something.

Opening the palm, he finds himself now holding the necklace that Yuiren had given him the night before in his dream.

A smile appeared on his face as he stared down at it. "It's true. You were here. Thank you Yuiren, whereever you are."

Tomahome got up, and rolled up his futon, packed his stuff and walked back in the direction where he had left Nuriko and Miaka the other day to find them both still asleep. Or at least Nuriko was, because when he reached them, he see's Miaka look up in surprise at him from her futon.

Giving Nuriko a slight shake to wake him up, Tomahome offered a hand to Miaka to help her up. "Come on you two. We need to get started with making our way back to the capital if we want to catch the boat."

"Tomahome? Are you..." Nuriko asked tentavily. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, now. Come on, let's get going." Tomahome demanded. "Miaka I have something for you." he said as he pulled out the necklace Yuiren had given him "I found in the hut in Yuiren's room. There's a custom in the village where a family member is supposed to make this in order to welcome a new bride to the family. I think she would like you to have it. It's not that badly made considering that a five year old made it."

Miaka takes the necklace and with Tomahomes help, places it around her neck. "I'll always cherish it. For Yuiren and the others sake, Tomahome. It's very pretty." Miaka said quietly a smile playing out on her face as she stared up at Tomahome.

While Nuriko and Miaka broke camp, Tomahome looked up into the sky, and he could almost see Yuiren and the others looking down at him, smiling as they watched him.

_*Thank you minna. I promise you that I'll protect Miaka with all my heart. I want let anything or anyone harm her. I swear it.*_ Tomahome promised.

_The End... or is the beginning>_

   [1]: mailto:nuriko_oneechan@hotmail.com



End file.
